


Pokémon - the Surrec region

by CaryDorse



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adventure, Best Friends, Friendship, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pokemon, Pokemon Battles, Pokemon Gyms, Pokemon Journey, Pokemon References
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:36:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29839563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaryDorse/pseuds/CaryDorse
Summary: Melanie and Lydia begin their Pokémon journey. Meanwhile an evil Team rises from the shadows.





	Pokémon - the Surrec region

Littlewood-town lived for its departure festival. Almost all of the townsfolk had come and the garden behind the laboratory didn't have enough space to seat all the attendants around eight banquet tables. A dozen parents sat next to their 14-year-old children, eyes filled with pride and tears.

Professor Hazel stood on a make-shift stage and held a rousing speech. She had held the same speech every year for almost 30 years.  
Maybe, if you listened close enough, you'd notice a couple new anecdotes and appreciate some sections she had actually shortened. But chances were you didn't.

Lydia’s eyes glazed towards one of the cake-stands.  
Among the 6 children that would start their journey today, she was among the 3 that already had their first Pokémon. A Poliwag. She had thought about just getting on her way already yesterday. She could already be in Blanca by now.  
But she wouldn't do this to her Dad. A lot of the older townsfolk shunned him, despite being one of professor Hazel's most trusted assistants. He had once been a member of the criminal Team Spectre, and even though no one could prove it, they would whisper about him “getting a long to well with ghosts". If she were to disappear off too early and without warning, people would make up all kinds of stuff.

Lydia also didn't want to leave her friend Melanie alone, who sat next to her now and was just as ready for this speech to be over as she was. Her Growlithe sat at her feet, better trained than you'd expect from a pet Pokémon.  
They had planned this together for years now and they had trained together for just as long.  
“But just like a Magikarp that may stay in one lake for all its life and never evolve above splashing in the water, a human also has to leave their home so they may gain experience. It will be a long and tedious journey, but once you learn to swim against the stream of Caston-city, you too will be strong and revered. Melanie, Lydia, Thomas, Robert, Anna, Daniel: please come up to the stage.”  
The children did so, standing in a lax line, facing the audience for a moment. In reality they were much more focused on the table before them. They could not see what was under the painted box on it, but they all knew anyways.  
“Your journey may be long and hard, but you will not face it alone. You will find new friends, rivals and - most importantly – companions.” Finally, the old woman lifted the table's covering and presented the three pokéballs on it.

Each year the old woman called her colleagues and had the three starter pokémon brought here from all over the world, each year different ones.  
“Melanie, Lydia, Thomas, you already have your first pokémon. Robert, Anna, Daniel, you are facing one of the most important decisions in your life. Will you choose Snivy, the grass-snake-pokémon from the Unova region, Squirtle, the tiny-turtle-pokémon from Kanto or Cyndaquil, the fire-mouse Pokémon from Johto?”  
The three teenagers looked at each other. They had already decided weeks ago. No one knew which three exactly it would be, but there had been speculations. Squirtle hadn't been a surprise . The old Oak had his three starters that he recommended to everyone and he handed them out like candy. And the other two weren't far off either. The three starters always had the same three types and each one of the new trainers had their favourite.  
For Daniel it was the water type, Anna the grass-type and Robert... well he always put on his arrogant smirk and said “wait and see". 

Thomas struggled with his Zigzagoon, which wormed it’s way out of his hand and tried fleeing the scene. He petted it along it’s back and whispered that it only had to stay in his arms for just a couple more minutes, that it didn't have to do anything, that it could just look away and promised he'd call it back into its pokéball the moment this was over. It had always been quite scared. 

“Daniel, which companion will you choose?”  
“I choose Squirtle!” he called out while he took the pokéball and pushed the white button. The blue turtle appeared in front of his feet and he took it into his arms. There were camera-flashes from the audience.  
“Robert, it's your turn.” He stepped in front of the table and took a look at squirtle, then Daniel, then Lydia. “I'll take Snivy.” Then he summoned it, but did not take it in his arms.  
“The last one is Cyndaquil. Anna, will you take it?”  
“Yes, I choose Cyndaquil.” Her voice was charged with anger, all directed at Robert. As she summoned the fire-mouse it squealed in happiness “Quill! Quill!” Anna was unsure what to do. She had spent tge last month reading up on grass-type-pokémon: keep them away from fire attacks. She took the creature into her arms eventually, but kept it at a distance from her body when she saw the sparks in its mouth.  
Melanie knew that the rodent was still too young to know how to use ember. Growlithe had had these sparks before then, too. Fire-type-pokémon just lit up sometimes when they were emotional. That was also the reason why her Mom didn't allow him inside the house. In the year since the dog had hatched out of the egg, that had been a birthday present from her Dad, she didn't allow him inside the house. Melanie would still take him into her room and just call him into his ball when she heard her parents' steps in front the door.

Now they got their pokédex, their official trainer-Ids, their badge case and a gift package from the local shops. A photographer had them all stand together as a group, then the parents came with their cameras, while the table’s were set with a feast.

Tom let his Zigzagoon retreat back into its pokéball.  
“I think I'll take the next route directly to Blanca and then Battery-city.”, said Daniel. “The sooner I get my first badge the better.”  
“I think we'll take a detour through the woods first.” Lydia's words were muffled through a mouth full of spaghetti. “Yeah,” added Melanie, “we wanna do some training first.”  
“Provided you don't burn the entire forest down."  
“Ahem...,” it was Anna. “Melanie, you don't coincidentally have some reference material for fire-starters, do you?”  
“No. But you could ask the professor.”  
“I already did, but...”  
“Just remember to keep it cool. Everything will be fine. Just keep your hands off the red spots on its back and don't let it fall into cold water.”  
“Alright.” She went back to her parents.

Melanie stayed with Lydia and her family. Her own mother had not come. Like most things she absolutely disapproved of her daughter's decision to become a Pokémon trainer. These things were nothing better than a child's fantasy and Madame ought to be old enough by now, to know that she'd just waste her life away. How many trainers set out to become total failures? How many lost entire decades of their life, before they couldn't even join the work-force if they wanted to? Melanie may want to go out into the world now, but she couldn't keep this up forever. She'd be lucky of she met anyone who'd take her in then. When Melanie came crawling back home to her mother after 20 years, she wouldn't take her in again.  
The entire previous afternoon had been one long fight. They'd fought before then, too. Often and loudly. By the morning Melanie was just too tired to even say goodbye. The entire townsfolk already knew of course.  
Few things stayed secret here for long. Even half a year ago, when her Dad died in a car crash, it had been her neighbour Mr. Gardener, who had told her first, putting aside her snow shovel and pulling her into a hug.

Now they moved on to cake, then ice-cream. They got bombarded by people giving them just one more crucial advice. Yet more pictures were taken, Poliwag shot bubbles at Squirtle. Squirtle tried mimicking it, but failed.

At point 10 pm the six parted.


End file.
